Workshops
BASKETMAKING WORKSHOPS AT THE OLD BREWERY STUDIOS 2027
Welcome to our 2027 willow weaving programme. This year we are excited to host some of the best basketry tutors from the UK and Europe. We have a fabulously diverse collection of Heritage baskets for you to choose to make, from: Orkney Cubbies, Catalonian baskets, Scottish arm creels, Rush bags and matting, Mandelette mould work, fine Belgium skein work and complex Perigord baskets. These incredibly beautiful baskets are woven with willow, rush and bark most of which is harvested sustainably by hand. The tutors work so hard to keep these patterns alive through research and repeat making so here's your opportunity, by making a heritage basket, to be part of the basket's history. We also have contemporary basketry workshops, such as Mad weave, Multistrand weave, fine willow baskets and interlacing. Plus, Justin Capp is back to teach leatherwork for woven handbags. There are also courses specifically for complete beginners designed to get you hooked and addicted to weaving as much as we all are!
It's a real privilege to host such talent here at The Old Brewery Studios so we are looking forward to a creative and inspiring 2027.
How to book a place on a workshop
* Choose a workshop and send an email to Sue at suekirkwillowbaskets@outlook.com (You cannot book workshops online).
*You will then receive an email from Sue with a letter attached which contains information about workshops and payment details. Bookings are only secured once payment has been received in full. Please note: It can take a couple of days for Sue to reply to your booking request.
*Please note, we have a new payment policy, there will be a 50% non-refundable deposit on all courses this year.....details at the bottom of this page.
*If a workshop is full, you can join a reserve list......email Sue to join a reserve list for a workshop.
Workshop Levels
Workshops are suitable for beginners, intermediate and advanced students You need to have strength and flexibility in your hands for all basketry.
Please check the ability level of the workshop before booking. Here's a rough guide to where you may be in your basketry journey:
Beginner......working on your first 15-20 baskets/pieces, mostly basic round stake and strand, some oval. Need help with most weaves, wobbly baskets all round and embracing the wobbles! Frustrating at times, but patiently learning how repeat making is beneficial, beginning to grasp basic patterns, learning basketry terms, tools and names of weaves. Need to watch a tutor and listen to instruction, have a go and maybe ask for help again.
Intermediate......you are able to make a basket/work at home alone, less wobbles, looking neater, understand a couple of basic borders and can achieve these alone, ability to have a go at slightly more complex weaves. Can work from a basic and more complex recipe in a book. Starting to select and prepare own material successfully. More confident, understand how to 'fix' some common problems. Still finding watching a tutor demonstrate whilst hearing new instruction valuable, once you see demonstration and put into action the new technique 'clicks'.
Advanced.....you now work calmly and patiently, can easily make a number of baskets at home alone to a high standard. Been working as a long term hobbyist or professional maker. Can follow verbal instructions from tutor, create own designs ( contemporary work) or work from traditional patterns. Can work on complex patterns, can select and prepare own material. Makes regularly throughout the year, enjoys experimenting with new ideas and materials. Can repair baskets or 'unpick' a pattern and re-create successfully.
Workshop information
Most workshops have 8 students, unless otherwise stated. Workshop times are from 9.30am-4.30pm with a break for elevenses and lunch. You need to bring your own lunch, except for the four day Perigord course. We request that mobile phones are put on silent throughout the workshop.
MULTI-STRAND WEAVE BASKETS WITH SUE KIRK
Thursday 18th and Friday 19th March FULL
Cost £240 Level: Suitable for all abilities. 9.30am - 4.30pm, (8 students)
There are three variations of multi-strand weaves to choose from, a rope coil weave, a herringbone rope weave and a tick-tock rope weave. Choose one of these three weaves and using coloured willows create a highly textured surface on your basket. Beginners work with the most straight forward rope weave on a basic form. More experienced makers can experiment with different numbers of side stakes positioning them closer or further apart in order to create shorter or longer strokes, changing the textures of weaves, the possibilities are endless!
SCOTTISH ARM CREEL WITH RACHEL BOWER
Monday 22nd and Tuesday 23rd March FULL
Cost £280 Level: Suitable for all abilities. 9.30am - 4.30pm, (8 students)
Come and explore the traditional techniques found in Scottish arm creels, a type of frame basket that was used by fisherwives along a small stretch of Scotland's northeast coastline during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These baskets were carried over the arm and used to display fish at markets and on selling rounds.
Over two days, you'll learn to make your own creel using an unusual construction method that produces a strong, sturdy basket with a striking arrow detail that's revealed once the ribs are trimmed. You'll also learn how to 'pack' the basket using a technique that builds up the weave in selected areas to fill out the shape. The finished creel is ideal for harvesting or foraging, carrying tools, or holding a knitting project on the go.
Some previous experience of working with willow is helpful but not essential. Please note that basketmaking can be physically demanding on the hands.
BEGINNERS ROUND SHOPPER WITH JEAN SHORE
Thursday 1st - Friday 2nd April
Cost £240, Level: Complete beginners welcome, 8 students, 9.30am-4.30pm
Whether you’re looking for a fun creative experience or keen to learn a new skill, this 2-day workshop is the perfect introduction to basket making.
Designed for beginners, you’ll be guided step by step through the process of creating a beautiful round shopper basket to take home and treasure.
Over the two days, you’ll learn how to:
- Choose and prepare the willow
- Create a sturdy round base
- Set up the uprights and weave the sides using traditional techniques such as paring, waling, and French and English rands
- Form a lovely border
- Finish with a wrapped handle
By the end of the workshop, you’ll have gained the confidence and skills to continue your basket making journey — and a gorgeous handwoven shopper you can be proud of!
MANDELETTE, MOLD WORK WITH JEANNY BOUWEN
Tuesday 20th - Wednesday 21st April FULL
Cost £280, Level: Intermediate and advanced 8 students, 9.30am-4.30pm
The Mandelette is a traditional form, known for it's beautiful curvature and the various finishes that can be applied. We focus specifically on a braided edge. The molds are available in a range of sizes. Everyone can work at their own pace and, if they wish, experiment with different variations.
Wooden molds will be on sale at the end of the workshop.
This is a unique opportunity to learn how to weave a basket on a wooden mold with one of Belgium's finest basketmakers.
ROUND SKEINED COASTER WITH JEFKE GEYSELS
Thursday 22nd - Saturday 24th April
Cost £345, Level: All levels welcome, a healthy dose of of interest in refined technique is a must!, 8 students, 9.30am-4.30pm
During your three day workshop, Jefke will take you into the wonderful world of skein work. The focus will be on splitting and planing the willow into long thin strips then these beautiful, perfect skeins will be woven into a coaster.
Jefke Geyels is a highly skilled fine willow worker based in Belgium, originally taught by Esme Hoffman, Jefke grows his own willow, has recently won Basketmaker of the year at Polish Basketry World Championships and currently designs for Hermes.
PLUM HANDBAGS WITH SUE KIRK AND JUSTIN CAPP
Thursday 29th and Friday 30th April
Cost £240 Level: Intermediate and advanced 9.30am - 4.30pm. (8 students)
On the first day work with Sue weaving a small oval basket, using simple techniques such as: pairing, reverse pairing, pull down wale, chase pairing and waling, French rand, four rod wale and a beautiful thin border created by Joe Hogan specifically for tightly spaced uprights. Work with fine organically grown willows, in a variety of colours. This little basket makes a perfect day bag for a phone, purse and snack!
On the second day work with leather worker Justin Capp learn about leather straps and handle options for your basket, spend the morning learning how to cut and burnish straps and go on to learn some braiding options for decorative effect. Learn how to approach different ways of fitting (like splicing around an upright) and how to choose the right area on your basket for strength and stability. Learn fixing options like copper rivets and work with vegetable tanned leather which compliments the willow beautifully.
INTRODUCING THE PERIGORD FRENCH SPIRAL BASKET WITH JUDY SIMMONDS
Tuesday 11th to Friday 14th May
Cost £585 Level: Intermediate and advanced 9.30am - 4.30pm. (6 students) VEGAN LUNCH INCLUDED . VENUE: KING'S CLIFFE VILLAGE HALL.
Shoulder and hand strength are required for this workshop as well as a great deal of patience! This is a complex basket and the course is designed as an introduction to the construction, do not expect a perfect result in four days! We are planning a refresher and polishing course in 2028!
The Perigord and Dordogne regions in France produce Jerusalem artichokes, potatoes, walnuts and mushrooms. The bottom rods of this agricultural ‘potager’ willow basket radiate like spokes of a bicycle wheel, allowing dirt and small stones to shake through after swishing in a pond or stream. The overlocking technique (rather like the Neolithic weave) relies on a taut, precise tension of rod on rod. There are endless slight variations of form, colour, and proportions possible for the ‘Bouyricou, ‘Perigourdin’ or ‘French Spiral’
Each maker first works through trial base constructions to learn particular hand movements. Then the flow of 120 rising radiating rods form a controlled spiral, gauged by eye, until gradually closed and finished with a double rim, and oval handle for an oval basket. Makers should complete their basket and take with them an insight and introduction to this fascinating construction.
GIGANTIC FLOWERS WITH THE CODDIWOMPLERS
Monday 17th May
Cost £90 9.30am - 4.30pm. (12 students) Suitable for all levels designed for complete beginners
The Coddiwomplers are back to teach these gigantic flowers for your garden!
In this workshop, participants will be taught how to weave willow flowers. This project uses traditional basketry techniques commonly employed in forming the base of a basket, making it an ideal introduction for anyone interested in basket weaving. By the end of the workshop, you’ll have created a large willow flower, perfect for hanging on a wall or mounting on a stem to display in your garden. We will also have time to add decorative items such as a leaf and a little snail or two!
LA CHARMOTTE WITH VALERIE TESTU
Thursday 27th and Friday 28th May FULL
£280 per person, 9.30am-4.30pm Suitable for intermediates and advanced students
The Charmotte is a traditional basket used for picking cherries in North-Eastern France. With it's shoulder strap and a hollow at the back, it is worn on the hip or across the stomach. You can see Valerie modelling the basket in the portrait gallery below. We use our for picking apples, it's perfect as you can harvest with both hands and nothing looks better than a basket full of freshly picked fruit!
Techniques used: oval split base weaved with pairing, wales, French randing, packing, a foot and cranked low handles to attach the shoulder strap. You have the option to weave one or two sets of French randing, depending on your skill level.
Valerie organises Recontres Atour Du Saule in Bouxurulles each year, this fabulous basketry festival hosts 12 tutors and a basketry market, well worth a visit!
FINE WILLOW BASKETS WITH NADINE ANDERSON
Monday 1st and Tuesday 2nd June
Cost £240 , Level: Beginners and Improvers, 8 students, 9.30am-4.30pm
Nadine will teach traditional weaving techniques using fine 2–5-foot willows. White & Buff Noir from Musgrove Willows, Somerset combined with her Cambridgeshire home grown Dicky Meadows and le Petite Grisette. Working in the round to create shallow egg baskets, deeper fruit picking baskets or wide shallow trays. These have been Nadine’s “bread and butter” pieces for more than 28 years. Pairing, waling, English and French rand, rod borders, wrapped handles are some of the techniques that will be taught. Nadine will give lots of tips on shaping and proportions that will be helpful when learners weave independently and design their own future baskets.
POPPYHEAD BASKET (LIDDED ROUND BASKET) WITH PETER DIBBLE
Monday 14th and Tuesday 15th June FULL
Cost £240, Level; intermediate and advanced, 8 students
This basket will teach you how to make round lids fit. Weaving with home grown willow, you’ll first make a rounded vessel with a track border, then the lid with an internal rim and a small cranked handle making it a practical basket to keep things in. There will be the chance to vary the weave on the vessel to your own design making the basket personal to you.
This is a great opportunity to work with Peter who is one of the UK's leading basketmakers, he grows his own willow and teaches internationally.
GARDEN BASKET WITH PETER DIBBLE
Wednesday 16th and Thursday 17th June
Cost £240, Level: intermediate and advanced (8 students) 9.30am-4.30pm
This basket is a good way to introduce yourself to square work. There will be a variety of skills to master like making a parallel square base using a screw block, scallomed stakes, packing and the all important border with corners. With the addition of a handle you will have a beautiful and practical basket for your garden.
You will weave this basket with willows grown by Peter in Norfolk. Peter Dibble's square work is the finest in the UK, he makes bespoke work to commission as well as teaching internationally.
INTERLACE PEBBLES AND SMALL ORGANIC FORMS WITH SUE KIRK
Monday 28th and Tuesday 29th June
Cost £240, Level: All abilities, beginners welcome. 8 students
Spend two days weaving willow into a beautiful small organic form. Learn how to design a form from a starting point such as a pebble, build a frame using hoops of willow and learn how to weave your form using the interlace technique, also referred to as 'random weave' or 'free weave'. Learn how to expand and reduce the shape and how to weave density and pattern into the forms. We will be working with hard willow rods such as Packing Twine, Green Dicks and Dicky Meadows and you will learn how to prepare these rods for interlacing. We will also look at work by contemporary willow sculptors and discuss their methods and diversity of interlacing with an aim to develop your own individual style of weaving.
ORKNEY CUBBIES WITH TIM JOHNSON
Friday 23rd-Sunday 25th July
Cost £365 , Level: All ability levels welcome , 8 students, 9.30am-4.30pm
Following Tim’s previous two workshops exploring the basketry traditions of the north of Scotland; the Caithness Hayve in 2025 and Kishies and Caishies from Orkney & Shetland in 2026, for 2027 Tim will teach the Orkney Cubbie. This general utilitarian round basket would have had many uses around the croft and was made in several sizes suitable for gathering potatoes, bringing the day’s catch back from a fishing trip or storing household items. The Cubbies unique openwork base is perfectly designed for soil or sand to fall away and was easily replaced if the basket needed repair.
These diverse baskets were traditionally made with a variety of local Orkney materials including Bent Grass, Oat Straw, Dock Stems or Heather, it was twined together with hand made Soft Rush cordage or imported Sisal or Coir strings. During this workshop we will make the cubbies with rush and combine our own hand made cordage for the top and bottom borders of the basket and for stitching the unusual mesh base while using sisal strings for the main body of the basket.
Tim has travelled to Orkney several times to research this fascinating tradition, basketry that evolved distinctive features using local materials, in the absence of willow, to fulfil the basketry needs of the crofting communities.
TRADITIONAL CATALAN BASKETS
Monday 26th - Wednesday 28th July FULL
Cost £365 , Level: intermediate and advanced, 8 students, 9.30am-4.30pm
Catalan Basketmaking is a distinctive craft tradition with a great variety of baskets that have fulfilled the everyday needs of the Catalan people for centuries.
Using a unique base design, traditional Catalan wailing and combining willow with European cane(Arundo donax) or big willow skeins, these baskets are both elegant and strong.
During this course you will make Catalan baskets exploring variations in forms, borders and handles.
In this occasion you will use big willow skeins to weave the sides of the baskets and brown willows organically grown here in King's Cliffe.
Monica Guilera Subirana is one of Catalonia's leading basketmakers, she weaves traditional and contemporary baskets using locally grown materials and teaches internationally. Together with Mia Hvid Jorgenson and Tim Johnson, she organises Weaving By the Sea in her home town Vilanova i La Geltru.
MADWEAVE IN WILLOW BARK WITH MAI HVID JORGENSEN
Wednesday 1st - Friday 3rd September FULL
Cost £365, Level: All levels welcome, 8 students, 9.30am -4.30pm
Mad weave is a technique known from other materials, such as fabric. Here we enjoy the many nuances the willow bark offers. It's possible to weave two round trays. Playing with the colours, gives so many options for different patterns.
Mai will be providing the willow bark for this course which she has harvested by hand. This is a unique opportunity to weave with one of Denmark's leading basketmakers. Mai organises the Spring and Autumn residential basketry school, Weaving by the Sea, with Tim Johnson and Monica Guilera Subirana and Francois Desplanches at Vilanova i La Geltru. This is a course not to be missed!
HARVESTER AND GATHERER HANDBAGS WITH SUE KIRK AND JUSTIN CAPP
Wednesday 29th September - Friday 1st October
Cost £320, Level: Intermediate and advanced, 8 students, 9.30am-4.30pm
This course is designed for students who want to further their skills with leather. Justin Capp with be teaching how to add lids, hinges and straps with buckles to your baskets. Sue and Justin have worked together designing handbags for some time. The Gatherer and Harvester baskets are a step on from the Plum handbags which are usually taught here.
Work with Sue on the first half of the course, make a rectangular based narrow basket with curved or straight sides. Techniques include; square base with randing, scalloms, French randing, three rod and four rod wale.
On the second day Justin Capp will teach the leather craft element of the course. You can compliment your basket with leather additions. Make a brass buckle adjustable strap with keeper and a lid of your choice. Choose between either the 'Harvester' (hinged flat lid, whip stitched to a fitted rim) or 'Gatherer'(hinged double thickness flat lid). Both options include the choice to decorate with traditional stamping tools to create a design of your own. You can also add a Sam Brown stud closure and straps and hinges fitted with copper rivets.
Skills include: cutting leather with a strap cutter, burnishing edges, circle and slot hole punching, decorative tooling with stamp design, whip stitching and braiding.
RUSH TWILL WEAVE TOTES WITH NADINE ANDERSON
Monday 4th - Tuesday 5th October
Cost £240 , Level: all abilities, beginners welcome, 8 students, 9.30am-4.30pm
Weaving with rushes foraged in Cambridgeshire create a beautiful and practical Tote basket with leather handles for comfort and longevity. This rush project covers a variety of traditional basketry techniques such as double check weave on the base, pairing, 3 rod waling, double twill weave on the sides, and a durable 2 or 3 rod border. A great basket if you are new to rush work and making on a mould.
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EXPLORING RUSH WITH FELICITY IRONS
Wednesday 27th - Friday 29th October
Cost £320, Level: All abilities, beginners welcome 8 students, 9.30am-4.30pm
Spend two days working with Felicity Irons using her hand cut rushes from the rivers Ouse and Nene. Felicity will guide you through your chosen project/s. Choose from spiral and square bath mats, hats, place mats, bags and more! Learn a variety of techniques from plaiting, check weave and pairing, trac borders and sewing plaits. Many of these techniques have not changed for centuries. Felicity and her team at Rush Matters create floor matting for National Trust properties and create bespoke work for interiors across the globe. A fabulous opportunity to weave with one of our country’s finest makers.
DECORATIVE WILLOW WREATHS WITH THE CODDIWOMPLERS
Monday 29th November
Cost £90, Level: All abilities, complete beginners, welcome 12 students, 9.30am-4.30pm
Join the Coddiwomplers for a fun, creative workshop where you'll make your own beautifully decorated willow wreath. Guided by two experienced basketmakers, you'll learn traditional willow weaving skills and techniques as you create a collection of charming decorations for your wreath.
Learn how to weave willow leaves, little snails, posy holders and even a leaping hare, before bringing everything together to make your own design. With plenty of opportunity to experiment, play with different combinations and add your own personal touches, you'll leave with a one-of-a-kind piece of festive willow art to display in your home.
